‘This,’ Gabriella said, standing outside the car and looking up at the building, ‘is the Pantheon.’
Sam wasn’t quite sure what he was expecting, but it was bigger than he thought an ancient temple in the middle of a city would be. The huge concrete columns at the front of the building loomed over the four of them as they quickly walked across the piazza. A light rain began to fall, the stone ground slippery underfoot. They sheltered under the impressive portico.
They had managed to evade the remaining Agents in a wild car chase through Rome, weaving and wending in and out of laneways and dark streets, ending up close to where they had started. Now, all about them was eerie quiet, as if they were in the eye of the storm.
‘Inside—what we need is inside,’ Gabriella said.
Sam walked over and tried pushing against the gigantic bronze doors. Locked. Worth a try.
Then he stopped. The rain too had stopped.
‘What is it?’ Eva said to him, an alarmed look in her eyes.
‘It’s like my dream in New York,’ Sam said. ‘Lora, does this suddenly feel weird to you? Got the deja vu?’
Lora shook her head but her hand reached under her jacket for her dart gun. ‘We should—’
Across the piazza, a tall figure stood on the edge of darkness, watching them.
‘RUN!’ Lora shouted without hesitation, already pushing Sam towards the others.
The figure stepped out from the shadows, and for Sam, there was no doubting it this time. Dread washed over him like a tidal wave as the figure drew himself up to his full height and spread out his arms.
Solaris. Now he’s real.
Lora raised her gun—
FLASH!
The fire streaming from Solaris’ outstretched hand lit up the night as the fire-bolt roared across the distance between them. Lora instantly dropped her weapon as the heat seared the metal in her right hand, her glove smouldering dangerously as she frantically pulled it off. Solaris strode menacingly towards them and raised his palm again.
The Guardian in their car began firing as he took cover behind the vehicle, momentarily capturing Solaris’ attention.
Sam instinctively reached out and pulled them all behind one of the massive columns of the Pantheon—just in time, as Solaris threw another jet of fire in their direction. He could feel the concrete pillar glowing red-hot from the burst of flames.
‘We need a plan!’ Sam yelled as they ran from the square.
They ran through the cobbled streets at full pelt, throwing backward glances as they went. But the maze of Roman streets hid them from Solaris’ view as they scrambled through narrow lanes, turning and turning again to lose their pursuer.
They pulled up in a darkened alley and all was quiet again. But Lora was taking no risks. She found a small window that had been left open and led them through it into the tiny galley kitchen of a restaurant, already closed up for the night. The smell of disinfectant drifted up from the recently mopped floorboards as they caught their breath.
‘He’s … real …’ Eva began, as her breathing finally slowed. Gabriella looked at her in silent shock, the horror of her nightmare coming true dawning on her.
‘So about this plan,’ Sam started to say, but words failed him. Somehow he’d kept hoping that Solaris would turn out to be just a Dreamer bogeyman, not actual flesh-and-blood.
Lora looked pale. She said to Sam, ‘I know it’s confronting,’ then paused before going on, ‘but we have to stay focused on Gabriella’s dream—and what we have to do.’ She dialled the security team, wincing at the pain in her right hand.
Eva and Gabriella began rummaging through the drawers and cupboards of the kitchen, looking for something they could use to treat Lora’s burn.
‘The others are coming but they’re at the edge of the city,’ Lora said, pocketing the phone. ‘Ten minutes.’
‘Do we stay here?’ Sam asked.
‘No, we’re not safe,’ Lora said, moving away from the back door. ‘We have to keep moving, and be ready to make for the Pantheon when—’
WHOMP!
It was the unmistakable sound of Solaris’ fire-bolt. Through the small window in the back door, they could see flames erupting against the darkness.
Sam’s heart beat faster at the sight of the blaze, the flames licking higher and higher up the door.
‘Run!’ Lora yelled. ‘Out the front! Run!’
Sam was the last out the front door of the deserted restaurant, following the others through the obstacle course of neatly set tables and empty chairs.
WHOMP!
The door frame next to his head splintered and caught fire—
WHOMP!
Sam ducked and tumbled onto the street as a shot melted a fist-sized hole clear through the glass door.
‘Follow me!’ Gabriella screamed. The three of them ran fast behind her, around the corner and into a late-night music venue, the ushers happily waving Gabriella and her friends in.
‘I played here once,’ she explained, running through the busy club.
Hundreds of people were dancing and enjoying the party, blissfully unaware of what was taking place around them.
‘Come,’ Gabriella said, ‘out the back!’
‘It’s too busy! All these people, we can’t endanger them!’ Lora said in protest.
A few seconds later shouts started to cascade through the throng of people.
‘Solaris!’ Sam said.
‘No,’ Gabriella said. They were nearly through the crowd when her presence was noticed. ‘It’s because of me.’
‘Move!’ Lora said, the four of them forming a tight huddle as they pushed through the crowd, some of whom were reaching out to touch Gabriella.
There was another crescendo of screams, this time from the direction of the entrance, where they’d been a moment ago.
‘That’s Solaris,’ Sam said, his voice full of regret. We shouldn’t have come here.